It was opened in 1877 by the Great Yarmouth & Stalham Light Railway; it was taken over by the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway in 1893, which had built a large network of track over East Anglia.

It was conceived initially to transport holidaymakers from the Midlands to their destinations on the Norfolk coast; acquiring Yarmouth Beach station fitted into this grand strategy.

[2] It lacked the direct routes of its rival at Yarmouth Vauxhall, instead taking a winding path across Norfolk without serving major towns.

Use of the line gradually began to decline and, by the 1950s, competition from the roads diminished passenger numbers.

It is now a coach and car park; some platform canopy supports are still extant, which mark its former location.